Saturday, February 11, 2012

One's in love and gonna get married, One's happy round and gonna be a new mommy, One's gonna be a mommy three times over, Two are gonna turn thirty, One's signing on the dotted line and gonna be a home owner, One went home and is heaven's new victory and this one........She's gonna party. She's calling it 2012, the year of the party and she's gonna pray for grace to count it all joy.

Monday, January 2, 2012

In all the new and hopes and dreams and blanks on the page may the old, old truth guide your way and fill your days. "Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed. Because His compassions they fail not. They are new every morning; Great is HIS faithfulness.Lamentations 3:22-23

He IS. Happy New Year

710. for last January's day's off
711. for January's creative day and brunch
712. for February's Valentine's dinner with my family
713. for March's thrill of a new home
714. for April's exciting New York adventure
715. for May's Easter party
716. for June's 30th birthday celebration
717. for July fourth with the Schwartings
718. for August's girl's movie day
719. for September full of birthday's of those I love
720. for October's span of weekend traveling fun
721. for November's shopping with Melissa and laughing with friends
722. for December's redemption and celebration
723. for year's full of countless blessings
724. for His mercy to hold us up should our feet slip
725. for His victory lived out defeating my sin
726. for the sun that fills me reminders of Him
727. for fun loving Edie pointer to the truth
728. for strings of days spent with the best and dearest friends
729. for Mama answering the phone
730. for Dad's texts
731. for quick and spicy tomato soup
732. for hot fudge gifts
733. for hot fudge to eat
734. for the heater's warmth
735. for the Lord our banner coverer of all these days
736. for those mercies always new

Friday, December 9, 2011

Straight from the hip toting, baby loving, nursing mamas known as the la leche a league. What can I say I was brought forth naturally and was nourished on the mother's milk. I don't care what she says, she wanted to be a hippy. This is our bread and I promise it doesn't taste like cardboard.

I add a hefty dash of vanilla and hearty helping of cinnamon because I'm a lover not a hater, though the recipe doesn't call for it.

(mix the first four ingredients; mix the dry ingredients, add oats and nuts if inclined, then alternately add the wet and dry ingredients with the hot water until blended. If you use oats you might need a little more water. Use the oats, they're yummy! bake at 325 for about an hour-makes one large loaf or 3 small ones)

I can eat a mini loaf by my loan some in two sittings and that's with great restraint. I gift this all the time and throw in some cinnamon honey butt'ah to ward off the stink eye of, "Whole Wheat Banana Bread, huh?" I use sister friend's recipe and I sing blessings over her as I eat it by the spoonful. That butt'ah and this bread are a happy wedded lot.

Bake it, Slice it, Give it, Eat it and for the love of all things healthy slather it in the butter cause I said healthy and healthy is as healthy does.

Sunday, December 4, 2011

From a discounted bin and a two dollar bunch orange stretches wide beauty, open arms for all who look. From a red couch and a girl in pajamas the word stretches wide grace, open call for all who hear. Sons of Korah, whoever you are, He uses you to stretch wider still the wonder of it all.

Cries for restoration and ceasing of righteous anger. For the witness of mercy and the granting of salvation, they plea. What is the answer from the forgiver of wrong and the coverer of our err? Let us hear what God our Lord will speak, for He will speak peace to His people and to His saints. Let us not turn back to the folly of self but let us sons and daughters of men, like sons of Korah, turn to Him.

For "Mercy and truth have met together, righteousness and peace have kissed. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yes, the Lord will give what is good; and our land will yield it's increase. Righteousness will go before Him, and shall make His footsteps our pathway." -Psalm 85

Our way, our truth, our life, Our Jesus who trampled out the forrest of despair, who hewed down death. His love spanned the gap and bridged us straight to life and to a walk with Him.

694. for graces that fill us full
695. for gooey marshmallows scooped out by a spoon
696. for tulips that witness
697. for references remembered
698. for His joy
699. for His rich Word

700. for the way paved wide with Love.
701. for His infinite faithfulness
702. for orange, bright in His world
703. for His righteousness alone
704. for sunlight that drenches the paths in the woods
705. for the Way
706. for a beautiful, free grace filled calendar
707. for praise and it's power to lift, to part, to fill
708. for avocados green and ripe and delicious too
709. for assurance quieted in peace enough righteousness for all

Monday, November 28, 2011

The top of the tree won’t light and it undoes me like a ball of yarn let loose. This undoing and with a house full of guests, I’d rather will it to work than just let it go. This undoing sometimes is at the tone of a voice or the title of a book, or a copier jam. A plethora of minute externals that can set off the internal undoing in me, often on the days I’ve drummed up the determination to keep it together. I can feel it brewing like the wind that strips the trees bare and I rush to gather back the leaves of me. I wonder if He shakes His head funny that after all these days and all these steps with Him, that I still think I can keep it all together.

Like a faint breeze catches a strand of my hair a thought catches in me that I do the world a disservice when I try to keep it all together. For the truth is I am undone like a leaf in the whipping wind. Beauty is in the leaf yet it pales to the beauty of the one who sets it all in motion. The one who is the Creator, the one who never changes yet who is the changer, the one who establishes the seasons of our earth and the seasons of us, beauty is Him. He is our portrait of the invisible God and from Him and for Him and to Him are all things and He is the one who holds it all together.

In a world full of to do and to be all He asks is that you and I just be His. Let it fly, be undone and just hold onto Him and rest in the truth that it’s He that holds onto me and holds to you.

Praising the Savior, the Alpha, the Omega, the beginning and the end and the completer of the work all to the one who sends the numbers higher each one closer to Him.

685. For the richness of the gospel in Colossians13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses,14having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.15Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.-Colossians 2:13-15

686. For orange clementines pretty in their clear bowl
687. For a heater and a sweet note from my neighbors above
688. For mornings when the time moves slow
689. For morning company of prayers and the word
690. For furniture rearranging
691. For the tree all decorated and redeemed
692. For peach hazy sun glowing in the cold air driving home
692. For Christ the eternal Redeemer
693. For Christ our hope

Thursday, November 24, 2011

I understood the concept of a style icon before I understood the word concept. My first memories involve mimicking my neighbor and tapping it out plastic high heel style up and down the driveway. It's possible I watched Full House for Becky's clothes. It's unclear if there was ever a notebook of drawings of knock offs of her outfits. It was 1990, okay! Time heals all wrongs and now it's Audrey and Katherine and Princess Di and Jackie O, Oh and Kendi. The girl with the killer wit and spot on succinct, humor and mad style.

When I discovered her blog I did what any kid raised on puffed sleeves, side pony's and double socks would do, I alerted my bff of the new kid on the block. I made peace with Old Navy and went and bought this shirt. And then I ordered her famous red shoes......and quickly discovered I ain't no Kendi. I wore them once and them shoes ain't made for walking on these narrow feet. Like I needed the motorized scooter just to buy milk walking impairment.

My Kendi Reds have mourned in lonely exile for over a year, finally I pulled them out of the closet and cried like powder blue eye shadow going out of style at the prospect of letting them go. After a stylish walk in the most hideous stretchy pants I own, work shirt, stocking cap and laundry strung over my shoulder, genius struck......them babies fit with socks.

"What?" 'no?' Oh, you just wait and see, my style is going to catch like bad grammar in the heart of dixie. Watch out kids, there's a new style icon in town. And I don't wanna brag, but that perpetual pursed lip pout, stellar. Happy Thanksgiving, better wear your stretchy pants.